I ate Jiminy Cricket in Oaxaca, Mex.

7122007

Posted by: Laura

Now I like fried food as much as the next Southerner. Ive been known to crave the ultimate fried meal of fried catfish, french fries, and hush puppies. Ive even eaten fried venison steaks and fried okra multiple meals in a row. But after five days of tostadas, floutas, tacos, curros, fried plantains, enchiladas (which are fried here), I was craving a salad. I went to a restaurant and pointed to a salad on the menu. It tasted like bell peppers and was great. When I looked up the translation, I realized that it was a cactus salad. Ill add that to the list of interesting food.

Chris and I were walking through the market in Oaxaca. A small town southern, Mexico. You can buy any part of a cow you want in this market: actual meat cuts, or intestines, stomach, heart, liver, and other parts I couldnt recognize. We saw women walking around the market selling crickets. Crickets for eating, not for fish bait. So, we decided to try one. They are crunchy and a little spicy. They are not that bad, except for the legs, which are had to chew. (Mr. Louis, please dont have a heart attack after reading this).

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2 responses

7122007

Gulo(21:23:10) :

So, congrats on trying the “chapulines” (that’s crickets for you ‘gringa’), umm…i gotta’ defend my ‘food’ and tell ya’ again that not all is fried out there. Ask some of the locals! Glad you liked the cactus salad, not one of my favorites cuz of it’s slimy texture but it’s suppose to be super good for you. If you want, it’s delicious when scrambled with eggs and a side of beans (if you like beans) and they don’t have to be ‘refried’, you can ask for ‘frijoles de la olla’ (not fried). Um, i’m tempted to correct your spelling of food items but i know you’re rushing so, i forgive you! ha haaa.
Take care and have a blast…oh, and ‘gusanos’ (worms from a cactus plant) are also a delicacy in Oaxaca sooooo…if you’re adventurous, DO IT.

We’re back home in Jackson, Mississippi. The trip is over–well, let’s just say on temporary hold. We’ll continue it at some point, we still have virtually all of Asia and the Middle East left. For now we’re catching up with friends and family, and slowly finishing the last 2 months worth of blog posts. We hope everyone had a Merry Christmas, and for a New Year’s resolution we have a suggestion: take one trip this year outside your home country. And no, a beach in Cancun doesn’t count. If you need a suggestion or some practical info, we’re always ready to help.